Episode 57 The Hunter and the Prey (3)
Ahhun. He spat on the floor once and crossed his arms with a confident expression.
A large wild boar was now dead in front of him.
Even at first glance, a gigantic body that looks over 300 kg.
Balak’s warriors gathered around Ahhun and praised Ahhun’s achievements in unison.
“Wow! A piece of meat of this size would feed the entire tribe!”
“I only caught three rabbits.”
“Ahun’s wild boar is the best for this hunt.”
The warriors presented the prey they had caught and said.
The pig Ahhun had caught was the largest among the ones that came out so far.
This large-scale hunt, in which most of the tribe members participated, was itself a big game and contest.
And within the village, except for the chief, the greatest authority goes to the hunter who has caught the biggest and most ferocious game.
Ahhun said with a shrug.
“No matter how great I was, Captain Iyen would not be able to catch a game larger than this.”
“Then, from now on, will you lead the hunt?”
“Umm. If you follow the rules, that’s right.”
Ahhun shrugged and puffed up his arrogance.
However, the person to be proud of had not yet returned to the village.
Iyen, the hunting leader who leads Balak’s youth, is the only one who has not returned yet.
Ahhun waved his hand as if he had nothing to look at.
“No matter how great a leader, there is a limit to hunting alone. You won’t be able to catch a beast bigger than this.”
“But the captain didn’t go alone? Didn’t he take a slave with him? His name was Vikir.”
“You idiot! I’m a guy who can’t even walk properly on his own, so what’s the use of that!”
At the other friend’s question, Ah-hun burst into anger.
His face turned red as if he remembered the humiliation he had suffered before leaving for hunting.
Ah-Hoon pounded his chest with his fist as if to boast.
“See you later! You won’t be able to catch even a baby rabbit! That slave will definitely catch your ankle!”
Balak’s young warriors nodded at Ahun’s words with gaping mouths.
Whether he is right or wrong is not important.
After all, the right to speak of the guy who caught the big game was the first priority.
* * *
Meanwhile.
Shoot Aaaa –
A rocky valley where a large waterfall falls down.
Beneath it was a bedrock with sharp rocks jutting out, and even below that, a wide white sandy beach spread out.
The creek water was very clear. It is so transparent that you wouldn’t even know there was water there if it wasn’t for the sound of foam and water.
…slam!
A few fat koi climb up the waterfall.
The carp, unable to overcome the strong current, fell down and died when their bodies were pierced by the sharp rocks rising below.
Ayen and Bikir hid in the bushes by the waterfall and watched the scene.
“……come.”
Iyen lowered his breathing and said.
As expected, the large female oxbear they first noticed began to approach the mouth of the waterfall.
Thick horns with countless scars, thick fur, and muscles packed all the way to the inside.
No matter who sees it, it is not an ordinary Ox Bear.
This guy must have been the result of an individual born with a superior lineage surviving countless chaos.
He didn’t even have to hunt, he just pulled the fish caught on the sharp rocks and ate them in one bite.
I don’t drink water and eat only fish.
It was because the river water was highly salty and most of the things piled up on the white sand bar were salt, so it didn’t suit the taste of oxbears who like plain things.
“This is the area where the river meets the sea. That’s why the Salt River flows.”
Vikir nodded at Ayen’s words.
Come to think of it, it seems that the crayfish that were crawling along the creek down there were exceptionally large.
It is because it is a lobster, not a freshwater crayfish.
Meanwhile.
Even at this moment, the koi wanted to climb the waterfall and go over to the sea.
“It is said that if a carp succeeds in going back here, it can evolve into a large beast. My grandmother did that.”
Iyan explained again this time. I wasn’t particularly curious or asked, so Vikir just nodded roughly.
Whether or not the legend she told is true, koi the size of a forearm still struggle to climb up the waterfall, and most of them fail to climb the waterfall and fall down.
Even if the lucky carp fails to climb the waterfall, it can fall on the surface of the water or to a land close to the water and return to the water, but most of the unlucky carp are just stuck on a sharp rock and die.
And Oxbear was cleverly picking out and eating only those carps.
It was an attitude as if there was no need to move and hunt.
Is it because this is a great hunting spot?
In addition to the female oxbear, several other oxbears began to approach.
They notice the female who came first, then go to the downstream estuary and settle down to catch and eat the carp.
There were no rocks downstream, so there were no carp caught in the rocks, so I had to hunt while using my body.
The huge female oxbear turns her head and looks down with a pitiful look at her lousy competitors downstream.
It was a mixture of contempt and superiority.
Iyan was glaring at this Oxbear with serious eyes, hiding his presence.
It warned other approaching predators with a low growl, but was exceptionally tolerant of very small and young individuals among its oxbears.
Several Oxbears the size of puppies fearlessly approached and ran away with carp heads in their mouths.
The female oxbear glanced at the little ones, who she didn’t know whose offspring they belonged to, and ignored them.
It was the first time that Bikir had seen a baby Oxbear, so he was feeling a bit strange.
Iyen quickly recognized what Vikir was interested in and opened his mouth.
“Is this the first time you’ve seen an Oxbear calf?”
“I saw it for the first time. It’s much smaller than I thought.”
“Oxbear’s newborn baby is even smaller. It’s the size of a mouse. Because they are born during hibernation, there is no way to provide them with nutrients even if they grow big and give birth. They are incubated for twelve months and born at just that size.”
“The mother must be terribly fond of her offspring.”
“Of course. Based on the calves, if you enter within a radius of 100 meters, you will be attacked unconditionally. Balak’s hunters also do not touch pregnant females with calves.”
Oxbear is a heartless monster that does not hesitate to prey on its own kind when hungry, but it seems that only motherly love is remarkable.
Right then.
There was an opponent approaching the female Oxbear.
It was a male Ox Bear with a fairly large body.
It wasn’t as good as the female Oxbear, but this guy seemed to have aged quite a bit and was in a good weight class.
The guy snorted and followed the female’s scent as he approached.
The female oxbear is old and has bad eyesight, so she doesn’t see the male’s approach, but soon pricks up her ears.
Hearing is as sensitive as his eyesight is poor.
[Kreung!]
The female Oxbear suddenly let out a roar.
The large male, who had been approaching slowly, was startled and took a few steps back, eventually throwing them out.
It was because he did not have the confidence to win in an all-out war with a female Oxbear.
Bikir said puzzled.
“The female keeps refusing to mate?”
In fact, the number of males that female oxbear has driven away so far is over five.
There were some really big and strong looking males, but all of them didn’t seem to like the females.
“How on earth are you looking for a strong male?”
Bikir muttered something cryptic, and Iyen kicked out.
“You’re thinking about something wrong.”
“……?”
“That female isn’t looking for a strong male. Quite the opposite.”
It was as Ien said.
Soon after, a male oxbear began to approach the female hesitantly.
It is a young male with a small body who first approached a female oxbear and was kicked out for not being too shy.
The female was about 8 meters tall and weighed about 2 tons, while the male was about 4 meters tall and weighed just over 1 ton.
The male sneaks up and sniffs the female’s fur. Then, he started to rub his chest and back.
The female oxbear let the male sniff her body, as if she didn’t like it.
Bikir crossed his arms as if he didn’t know.
“What? Why did you choose the weakest male?”
“Because he wants a mate he can completely control.”
Iyen answered.
Strong, older spouses are surprisingly unpopular in Oxbear’s society.
Strong and experienced males often tried to kill female mates when excited.
The opposite was also the case.
So, Oxbears tended to prefer spouses who were still young and small in size.
So that they won’t be attacked after copulation is over.
“Of course, I can’t use those with poor seeds. They have great seeds, but they’re still young, so small ones are popular as mates. Regardless of male or female.”
It was as Ien said.
The female oxbear seemed to like the male oxbear.
I could tell by the fact that they secretly gave up seats at the most popular spots for carp.
Ayen smiled brightly at that.
“The criteria for choosing a mate for Balak’s warriors have many similarities with Oxbears.”
“…”
“In that sense, do you know what the most popular spouses are?”
Bikir wasn’t too curious, but Ayen steadfastly said what he had to say.
“It’s even better if you have a good breed, but if the young ones are injured and weak.”
This is why Balak’s warriors, when they went out hunting husbands and wives, killed half of their opponents and hung them in a noose.
If you make an asshole, you can’t run away and you can’t attack. However, it does not mean that there is a problem with fertility.
In short, it is said that it is enough to just pull out the seeds.
“…”
Bikir was silent for a moment.
While believing that the twinkling light coming out of Ayen’s eyes as he was looking at him, it must be because of his mood.
Right then.
[Grumble……]
A strange sound came from the waterfall.
Iyen and Vikir quickly turned their heads.
The female Oxbear was making strange noises different from before.
The male oxbear stops eating the carp and rushes over and rubs his nose on the female oxbear’s neck.
The female almost dragged the male by the scruff of the neck.
Before long, the two oxbears left the salt-laden sandbar and began to wade through the brush and into the jungle beyond.
Ayen dragged Bikir.
“Let’s go too.”
Iyen’s gaze, which had been fixed on the female oxbear until now, was now moving towards the male oxbear.
Ayen looked back at Bikir with a smile.
“That male will lose a lot of strength soon. At that time…”
Iyen Bikir, who held up his bow and arrow, also nodded.
It seems that hunting time will come soon.
